Beijing adopted the Regulation of Beijing Municipality on Foreign Investment (the Regulation for short), the first special one on foreign investment, representing its effort to address investment challenges encountered by foreign enterprises and enhance institutional openness in the capital city.

The Regulation contains 44 articles in seven chapters: General Provisions, Investment Promotion, Investment Protection, Investment Services, Investment Management, Legal Responsibilities, and Supplementary Provisions. The Regulation is significant for its effective execution of the Foreign Investment Law of the People's Republic of China and targeted, service-oriented, coordinating nature.

Attracting and utilizing foreign investment is an important part of China's high-standard opening up, and Beijing remains a top destination for foreign investment. During the 13th Five-Year Plan period, Beijing effectively utilized USD 79.6 billion in foreign investment, 11.8 percent of the national total. In 2023, the city welcomed 1,729 new foreign-funded enterprises, a 22.8 percent increase over the previous year.

The Regulation addresses the specific challenges faced by foreign enterprises. Zhu Hailuan, vice president of Sanofi Greater China, spoke of problems Sanofi had encountered with cross-border data flow as local authorities consulted with enterprises before introducing the new regulation. Beijing has been working toward establishing general data lists and significant data lists in the pilot free trade zone to tackle existing problems.

The Regulation calls for the establishment of a system to record and penalize dishonest conduct in government affairs. Ma Feijun, managing partner of government and public services, Deloitte China Northern Region, emphasized the value of legal frameworks for increasing enterprise confidence in dispute resolution.

The Regulation also recommends a unified catalog and execution list of government services in Beijing, streamlined one-window processing of government services for foreign enterprises, digital integration services, and improvements to Beijing's international portal, among other measures, to alleviate the operational burdens enterprises must bear and provide the support needed for their better growth.

A key part of this legislation is service. The chapter on Investment Services encompasses a range of measures such as clarifying overseas professional qualifications, independently accrediting vocational skill levels, and facilitating the government to regularly collect feedback from foreign enterprises.

(Source: Xinhua News Agency)